Matt Arnold, one of two Republicans running for an at-large regent position, today apologized for campaign mailings that left the impression he had been endorsed by the Arapahoe County Republican Party.

"As Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia once said, 'When I make a mistake, it's a beaut,' " he said, in a written apology. "I'm taking complete responsibility for a bad mistake that cast doubt on our party's honor and impartiality."

But the chairwoman of the Arapahoe County Republicans questioned the sincerity of apology.

In his apology letter, Arnold maintained campaign supporters mistakenly used GOP symbols and the Arapahoe County GOP name, but that he failed to proof the information before it went out.

Adding to the confusion was the fact the e-mails came from "Captain Arapahoe," an account Arnold used when serving as a precinct captain.

"The result was to leave a false impression that the party was taking sides in a primary," Arnold said.

The Denver Post last week reported on the controversy involving Arnold. Ryan Call, chairman of the Colorado Republican Party, said at the time the GOP was compelled to "condemn in the strongest terms" the misuse of the party's name. The party's rules do not allow for endorsements.

"An important line has been crossed," Call said.

Advertisement

Joy Hoffman, chairwoman of the Arapahoe County Republicans, questioned why it took Arnold almost a week to apologize. She said she also was struck by the "tenor" of his letter, which she said was an attempt to shift blame.

"It's a horrible disappointment that this even occurred," she said.

Arnold faces Brian Davidson in the June 26 GOP primary for the at-large seat on the University of Colorado Board of Regents. The winner takes on the incumbent, Democrat Stephen Ludwig, in what is the only statewide race on the ballot.

Arnold is best known as the leader of an organization called Clear the Bench, which aims to oust what it considers activist, liberal judges.

Here is Arnold's apology:

Dear Friends:

I owe an emphatic, unqualified apology to you as party officials, as well as to all our fellow Republicans in Arapahoe County and across the state. As Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia once said, "When I make a mistake, it's a beaut." I'm taking complete responsibility for a bad mistake that cast doubt on our party's honor and impartiality.

As a candidate for CU Regent at Large, I was wrong in lending my mass email system to campaign supporters for an Arapahoe get-out-the-vote message and then failing to pre-clear the material they actually sent out, which used GOP symbols and the name of the Arapaho County Republican party organization. The result was to leave a false impression that the party was taking sides in a primary.

The Army teaches principles of leadership, among them:

"A unit leader is responsible for everything his unit does, or fails to do."

In the spirit of those principles, I accept full responsibility for the letter distributed using my account.

Each of you has a lot to look after in this election year, and you didn't need my thoughtless action to create a distraction and an embarrassment right now. My desire to become our party's nominee for Regent is secondary to my desire to uphold a high standard of ethics and integrity, personally and for the GOP. For having failed to do so in this instance, please accept my apology.

Boulder is pretty good at producing rock bands, and by "rock," we mean the in-your-face, guitar-heavy, leather-clad variety — you know, the good kind. For a prime example, look no farther than BANDITS. Full Story